By John Dobberstein, Editor
COWETA — Coweta City Manager Julie Casteen apologized Monday after leaked phone messages appeared to show her questioning the intelligence of some opponents of the Project Atlas Data Center.
The text messages were sent to City Council member Jeremy Barnett late on Jan. 7. The messages were shared by the Say No to Coweta, OK Data Center group on Facebook, a group that has been vocally opposed to the massive proposed project.
Although developers have promised millions in payments to Coweta and Wagoner County taxing bodies, many opponents are concerned about the project’s potential effects on electricity and water availability.
“I don’t mean to sound demeaning or arrogant but a lot of the people protesting are just not very smart and can’t accept change,” Casteen wrote in a message to Barnett. “I guarantee to you a lot of people out there just don’t care and don’t have a lot of concerns about it. To me the biggest concern is utility costs potentially rising. But I think that’s will (going) happen whether Atlas is approved or not.”
About 30 minutes later, Casteen wrote she came from a lower-middle class family and started working when she was 14 to pay for college.
“I worked my ass off to get where I am,” Casteen wrote, “so these people sitting around all day with nothing better to do than find the next horror story of how the dc (data center) is going to destroy the universe just pisses me off.”
On Monday, when asked about the messages, Casteen said in a statement to the Sentinel she should have chosen her words more carefully.
“I recognize that what I said in text messages to others was inappropriate and hurtful, and I sincerely apologize,” Casteen said. “I take full responsibility for falling short of the standard this community deserves and am committed to better judgment and better communication moving forward.”
Project Atlas is a data center proposed last year to be built on about 100 acres between Highway 72 and Old Highway 51 in south Coweta.
Led by Beale Infrastructure, the proposal includes a 400-megawatt natural gas power plant and 20 acres of battery storage alongside a data center facility on 270 acres.
City officials had been aware of the project since the summer of 2024 but were prevented from saying anything publicly about it due to non-disclosure agreements they had signed with developers.
Beale said it would be contributing about $195 million over 25 years to the Coweta community, including $500,000 towards a water system master plan and $3 million for water infrastructure upgrades, along with $1 million for local parks.
Over 25 years, the estimated power will generate $50 million in franchise fees for the city, or $1 million to $2 million per year. Coweta Public School would receive about $17 million over that same period. “That is enough to give every teacher a $10,000 pay increase and still have $6 million left over for athletic facilities, sports programs and more,” said Laura Harvey, development director on the project for Beale.
After a lengthy public hearing on Jan. 19, the Coweta Planning Commission voted to recommend denial of a zoning change for the project. The request will go before the Coweta City Council for final consideration on April 6.
Casteen was named city manager in 2024 after Roger Kolman resigned from the post in 2023. Lisa Taylor served as interim city manager until Casteen, the assistant city manager, was chosen.
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